Rafferty Domnick Cunningham & Yaffa’s Greg Yaffa Responds to New York Times Story: “The Fight Often Begins After the Fall”

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla., Sept. 18, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A new New York Times story examining how a $15,000 workers’ compensation settlement affected the life of an injured construction worker is prompting Greg Yaffa, shareholder at Rafferty Domnick Cunningham & Yaffa (RDCY), to speak about what injured people can face long after an accident occurs.

The Times story, “The $15,000 Settlement That Destroyed My Father’s Life,” tells the story of Michael Wagner, a construction worker who survived a 35-foot fall on the job but was left with chronic pain. According to the story, Wagner continued working as a single father, underwent two major back surgeries and spent years navigating workers’ compensation and Social Security disability benefits.

In 2018, Wagner died by suicide. After his death, his daughter, filmmaker Brittany Wagner, discovered 694 videos her father had recorded over the years, documenting his pain, his work, his daughters and his efforts to obtain help.

Yaffa said the story illustrates an issue he has encountered throughout his career representing injured people: the accident itself is often only the beginning.

“What happens on day one isn't the whole case,” said Yaffa. “The fall, the crash, the diagnosis or the injury may be the moment that changes someone's life. But what comes afterward can last for years. There are doctors, insurance companies, employers, paperwork, appeals and questions about whether someone is really as injured as they say they are.”

Yaffa recently wrote about the broader issue in an essay titled “The Fight After the Fall: Why the Plaintiffs’ Bar Is Essential to America,” prompted in part by the Times story.

In the essay, Yaffa argues that plaintiffs’ lawyers have a responsibility to look beyond the legal claim and understand the person living with the consequences of an injury.

“A person's inability to work becomes a lost-wage calculation. A lifetime of medical care becomes a projection. Pain becomes a number. Somebody who had plans for the next 30 years becomes ‘the plaintiff,’” Yaffa wrote. “Part of our job is to make everyone stop doing that.”

Yaffa said the role of a plaintiffs’ lawyer is not simply to assign a dollar value to an injury, but to understand the full impact an injury can have on an individual and a family.

“We represent the person,” Yaffa said. “This isn't just a claim. This is someone's father, someone's daughter, someone's husband or wife. It's a person whose life changed, and our job is to make sure the full story is understood.”

He also emphasized that effective advocacy requires both compassion and discipline.

“Caring about a client isn't a weakness in our profession,” said Yaffa. “It gives you more reason to understand the evidence, confront the difficult facts and fight to make sure the person's story is heard.”

For Yaffa, the Wagner story also raises a larger question about what happens when injured people encounter systems that can be difficult to navigate without experienced advocacy.

“Plaintiffs’ lawyers hear ‘no’ a lot,” Yaffa said. “No liability. No coverage. No causation. No, your client isn't hurt as badly as you say. Sometimes the evidence supports that answer. But there are also times when ‘no’ really means, ‘This is as far as we're willing to go, and we're betting you won't make us go any further.’ There has to be someone willing to ask the next question.”

Yaffa said that responsibility is at the heart of the plaintiffs’ bar: ensuring that individuals facing large institutions, insurers and corporations have someone willing to investigate what happened, challenge the evidence and advocate for their interests.

About Rafferty Domnick Cunningham & Yaffa

Rafferty Domnick Cunningham & Yaffa is a leading Florida law firm dedicated to advocating for victims of mass torts, medical malpractice and corporate negligence. With a track record of holding powerful institutions accountable, the firm fights for justice on behalf of individuals and families affected by preventable harm.

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